Futures Contract: Meaning, Definition, Pros & Cons | 5paisa (2024)

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5paisa Research TeamDate: 30 Aug, 2023 12:38 PM IST

Futures Contract: Meaning, Definition, Pros & Cons | 5paisa (1)

Futures Contract: Meaning, Definition, Pros & Cons | 5paisa (2)

Content

  • What do You Mean by a Futures Contract?
  • Pros and Cons of Futures Trading
  • Bottom Line

Futures contracts are extensively used for trading in futures exchanges. However, every trader needs a certain degree of experience and knowledge to successfully complete future trades. They arerecognised as binding contracts.They permit the owner as well as that writer to either purchase or sell a respective stock/commodity at a predetermined date and rate in the future.

Future contracts have numerous advantages and disadvantages. The most prevalent benefits include simple pricing, high liquidity, and risk hedging. The primary disadvantages are having no influence over future events, price swings, and the possibility of asset price declines as the expiration date approaches. Discover below everything you need to know about futures contracts.

What do You Mean by a Futures Contract?

Every finance market enthusiast might be familiar with the term futures contract. A Futures Contract is nothing but a legalised contract designed for two distinguishing parties looking to secure their underlying assets, such as commodities, stocks, and bonds against the volatility of the market. That being said, a futures contract is much more complex in nature.

Hedgers typically look for security against price volatility in the future. Instead of wanting to earn a profit from the respective deal, they look for securing the cost of their products. Thus, it is a given that the profit or loss that might come from the sale is majorly offset by the cost of the underlying assets in the market.
Speculators, however, almost always trade against different trends in the market. They invest in a futures contract to make and attempt to sell it for profit in situations of price rise. Nonetheless, this trading must be done prior to the expiration date of the futures.

Futures trading by itself is a zero-sum game. It plays a quintessential role in ensuring that the prices of the products in the market aren’t impacted. Therefore, it locks the price. It offers complete security against potential price swings not may be predictable in the market.

Futures Contract: Meaning, Definition, Pros & Cons | 5paisa (5)

Pros and Cons of Futures Trading

Profit and loss concerning futures trading are generally boundless. Everyday price swings make these trades rather volatile. Let’s look at some pros and cons of futures trading to learn about this better.

Pros

•One of the unbeatable benefits of futures Contracts is that investors can work with futures prices associated with the underlying asset cost in the market.

•Traders make use of these types of contracts for hedging against potential price drops in the future market.

•Additionally, investors can significantly Dave themselves from paying straight up through leveraging margin.

Cons

•While the benefits of futures contracts are plenty, they come with their own set of risks. Speculators can thus lose initial margins as well if there is an opposite swing in the price.

• Investors may tend to lose out on desirable price perks on entering a futures contract.

•Investors can also encounter potential losses when using margin.

Bottom Line

It goes without saying that the market of commodity futures is extensively volatile. Traders can gain profits or encounter losses based on their skills and expertise. Thus, every futures trading enthusiast must have the required skills and expertise, along with the ability to take risks for encountering successful trades.

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Futures Contract: Meaning, Definition, Pros & Cons | 5paisa (2024)

FAQs

Futures Contract: Meaning, Definition, Pros & Cons | 5paisa? ›

Future contracts have numerous advantages and disadvantages. The most prevalent benefits include simple pricing, high liquidity, and risk hedging. The primary disadvantages are having no influence over future events, price swings, and the possibility of asset price declines as the expiration date approaches.

What is a futures contract in simple terms? ›

A futures contract is a legal agreement to buy or sell a particular commodity asset, or security at a predetermined price at a specified time in the future. Futures contracts are standardized for quality and quantity to facilitate trading on a futures exchange.

What are the disadvantages of future? ›

Following are the risks associated with trading futures contracts:
  • Leverage. One of the chief risks associated with futures trading comes from the inherent feature of leverage. ...
  • Interest Rate Risk. ...
  • Liquidity Risk. ...
  • Settlement and Delivery Risk. ...
  • Operational Risk.

Who benefits from futures contracts? ›

Companies engaged in foreign trade use futures to manage foreign exchange risk, interest rate risk by locking in an interest rate in anticipation of a drop in rates if they have a sizable investment to make, and price risk to lock in prices of commodities such as oil, crops, and metals that serve as inputs.

What are the problems with futures contracts? ›

Risks associated with futures contract

Margin call risk: If the market moves against your position, you may be required to deposit additional margin to cover potential losses. Failure to meet margin calls can lead to forced liquidation of your position. Expiration risk: Futures contracts have fixed expiration dates.

What are the pros and cons of futures trading? ›

The most prevalent benefits include simple pricing, high liquidity, and risk hedging. The primary disadvantages are having no influence over future events, price swings, and the possibility of asset price declines as the expiration date approaches.

Why would you buy a futures contract? ›

Narrator: One use of a futures contract is to allow a business or individual to navigate risk and uncertainty. Prices are always changing, but with a futures contract, people can lock in a fixed price to buy or sell at a future date. Locking in a price lessens the risk of being negatively impacted by price change.

How do futures contracts work? ›

A futures contract is a legally binding agreement to buy or sell a standardized asset on a specific date or during a specific month.

Do future contracts decay? ›

Futures do not suffer from time decay, which is a crucial advantage over options. Time decay erodes the value of options as they approach their expiration date. Futures prices, however, are not affected by this phenomenon.

What happens if you hold a futures contract until expiration? ›

If a trader has not offset or rolled his position prior to contract expiration, the contract will expire and the trader will go to settlement. At this point, a trader with a short position will be obligated to deliver the underlying asset under the terms of the original contract.

Why buy futures instead of stocks? ›

1. Fruitful Investment. Futures may not be the best way to trade stocks, for instance, but they are a great way to trade specific investments such as commodities, currencies, and indexes. Their standardized features and very high levels of leverage make them particularly useful for the risk-tolerant retail investor.

How do futures contracts pay out? ›

Settlement type: Futures contracts can be settled through physical delivery of the underlying asset or cash settlement. For crude oil futures like “CLZ24,” physical delivery is more standard, though many participants close their positions before the delivery date to avoid actual delivery.

Who writes futures contracts? ›

Futures contracts are products created by regulated exchanges. Therefore, the exchange is responsible for standardizing the specifications of each contract.

What is the long side of a futures contract? ›

There are two sides to every future or forward contract, a long and a short. The long is the purchaser of the contract, and profits as the underlying asset increases in value. The short is the seller of the contract, and profits as the underlying asset decreases in value.

Why do futures contracts fail? ›

Failure: An Insufficient Commercial Need

Some new contracts historically have failed because there was an insufficient need for commercial hedging. This occurred when economic risks were not sufficiently material or contracts already provided sufficient risk reduction.

What is the risk associated with buying a futures contract? ›

The amount you may lose is potentially unlimited and can exceed the amount you originally deposit with your broker. This is because futures trading is highly leveraged, with a relatively small amount of money used to establish a position in assets having a much greater value.

What is a futures contract and how does it work? ›

A futures contract is a legally binding agreement to buy or sell a standardized asset on a specific date or during a specific month. Typically, futures contracts are traded electronically on exchanges such as the CME Group, the largest futures exchange in the United States.

What are futures for dummies? ›

Futures trading is a financial strategy that allows you to buy or sell a specific asset at a predetermined price at a specified time in the future. It's a way to potentially profit from the price movements of commodities, stocks, and other assets.

What is the difference between a stock and a futures contract? ›

Futures contracts expire; shares of stock don't

A futures contract, in contrast, has a fixed life. A crude oil June 2023 futures contract, for example, expires on a certain date based on the contract specifications.

What is an example of a futures contract trade? ›

Futures contract trading example

Say it's April and you think the price of oil is going to rise in the future – you could open a long spread bet or CFD on a June oil future. Your profit is determined by how much the price of oil has risen by the future's expiry, and the size of your position – less any charges.

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